WRAL Documentary Durham Under Fire investigates how city is fighting complex issue of gun violence

In 2021, Durham, North Carolina recorded its deadliest year yet. Gun violence in this city is at an all-time high, and it shows no signs of slowing down.

Posted 9:00 p.m. Jun 27, 2022 — Updated 8:24 p.m. Jun 29, 2022

DURHAM, N.C. — While big tech companies are flocking to Durham and home prices are soaring in the Bull City, gun violence continues to be a problem. In 2021, Durham recorded its deadliest year yet.

Gun violence in the city is at an all-time high, and it shows no signs of slowing down.

The latest WRAL Documentary, "Durham Under Fire," investigates how local officials are tackling the issue of gun violence in their city.

The new documentary debuts on WRAL-TV on Wednesday, June 29, at 7:30 p.m.

WRAL’s Documentary team was given exclusive access to the Durham Police Department to see first-hand how officers are fighting the rampant and complex problem. They spent time with families decimated by gun violence, talked to advocates trying to tackle the root causes of this issue and pushed city leaders for answers.

The statistics speak for themselves. A total of 50 lives were lost last year, the highest number of homicides since at least 1995. More than 1,100 shootings have happened over the last year and half in the city, meaning more than two people are shot each day on average. Through June 1, 20 people had been shot and killed in 2022.

“Gun violence and what it’s doing to the community is a topic that deserves our time and attention,” said WRAL’s Investigative Documentary Reporter Cristin Severance. “Innocent people are getting shot shopping at the mall and driving down the street in Durham. We wanted to explore what’s behind the increase in violence and hold leaders accountable for what’s happening night after night in the Bull City.”

"Durham Under Fire" will take a deeper look into the issues affecting Durham, why so many people are shooting each other in the city and what’s being done to stop it.

How to watch

"Durham Under Fire" will premiere on WRAL-TV on Wednesday, June 29, at 7:30 p.m.

The documentary will be rebroadcast on WRAZ FOX 50 on Saturday, July 2, at 1 p.m. and WILM-TV in Wilmington on Sunday, July 3, at 6 p.m.

It will also be available for on-demand on wraldocumentary.com, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV and YouTube beginning June 29 at 7:30 p.m.

You can follow "Durham Under Fire" on social media using #wraldoc.

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